The latest Illiteracy

The article “The Latest Illiteracy” written by Jim McCue and Bryan A. Garner in 2009 reveals information about the ongoing decline of illiteracy in the U.K. with regards to its causes and consequences.

Particularly the example of how multiculturalism can have negative impacts on the development of literacy raised questions in my mind as to what degree I can agree with the argumentations of the text. While McCue and Garner point out that the coexistence of various languages within a classroom can lead to a slower pace of learning, especially for native speakers, I strongly have to disagree with multiculturalism being a negative influencer. Rather than being a restriction or an obstacle, I regard the multicultural environment within classrooms as an enriching experience, both for native and non-native speakers. Having various languages from various linguistic families can help students to understand other languages better, particularly when they are confronted with a different language at a later stage in their lives.

However, the author’s argument that literacy and a solid understanding of a language’s structure are fundamental aspects to ‘distinguish one meaning from another’ can be related to our society and language use patterns. In this manner, I agree with the writers as an incorrect use of grammar can lead to misunderstandings and become a burden to communicate efficiently. Among other aspects, McCue and Garner name unemployment, poverty and failure in schools as a consequence of illiteracy. Although written in a rather exaggerated manner, the reader understands that illiteracy can in fact be the catalyst of numerous social problems.

Despite the fact that I agree with literacy being an undeniably important aspect to succeed in life and to understand the world better, I do not agree with the overall prescriptivist approach of the authors. A development and change of both language and language use is a natural phenomenon and trying to stick to past conventions is a conservative and non-progressive approach which I highly oppose.